MONDAY, MAY 3, 1982
DEALING WITH PUBLIC COMPLAINTS
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THE COMPLAINTS OFFICER OF THE LANDS AND WORKS BRANCH, MR MICHAEL BYRNE, DEALT WITH 507 COMPLAINTS DURING THE FIRST QUARTER OF THIS YEAR, COMPARED WITH 621 IN THE LAST QUARTER OF 1981.
NEARLY HALF OF THE COMPLAINTS 227 OR 44 PER CENT
WERE ABOUT ROADS AND DRAINAGE.
OTHER COMPLAINTS CONCERNED, AMONG OTHER THINGS, ILLEGAL STRUCTURES, WATER SUPPLIES AND NOISE FROM CONSTRUCTION SITES.
MOST OF THE COMPLAINTS, 74 PER CENT, WERE RECEIVED ON THE TWO COMPLAINTS HOTLINES: 5-244744 (ENGLISH) AND 5-221616 (CHINESE). ANOTHER 24 PER CENT CAME FROM RADIO PROGRAMMES WHILE THE REMAINING TWO PER CENT WERE WRITTEN COMPLAINTS.
MR BYRNE, WHO HAS BEEN ON THE JOB FOR ALMOST A YEAR, SAID THAT QUITE OFTEN IT WAS NECESSARY TO VISIT THE SITE TO UNDERSTAND THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM.
+DEPENDING ON THE LOCATION OF THE SITE AND THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM, A SITE VISIT CAN TAKE AN HOUR .... OR HALF A DAY, HE SAID.
MR BYRNE, WHO WAS WITH THE FORMER PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT, SAID THAT THE PWD CEASED TO EXIST FROM APRIL 1 FOLLOWING ITS RE-ORGANISATION.
AS PART OF THE PROGRAMME TO RE-ORGANISE THE TRANSPORT RESPONSIBILITIES WITHIN THE GOVERNMENT, HE SAID, FIVE DIVISIONS OF THE TRAFFIC AND TRANSPORT BRANCH OF THE HIGHWAYS OFFICE WERE TRANSFERRED TO THE TRANSPORT DEPARTMENT ON APRIL 1.
THEY ARE THE TRAFFIC ENGINEERING (HONG KONG) DIVISION, TRAFFIC ENGINEERING (MAINLAND) DIVISION, TRAFFIC AND TRANSPORT SURVEY DIVISION, TRAFFIC CONTROL AND SURVEILLANCE DIVISION AND ROAD SAFETY DIVISION.
THIS MEANS THAT COMPLAINTS AND ENQUIRIES ABOUT TRAFFIC ENGINEERING MATTERS ARE NOW HANDLED BY THE TRANSPORT DEPARTMENT.
HOWEVER, MR BYRNE SAID, HE WOULD CONTINUE TO DEAL WITH COMPLAINTS ABOUT MATTERS CONCERNING THE BUILDING DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT, ENGINEERING DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT, NEW TERRITORIES DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT, WATER SUPPLIES DEPARTMENT AND THE NEW LANDS DEPARTMENT.
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